Chapter Three: My Wife Calls

After calming his nervous excitement, Zhou Chen pressed the answer button.

“Hello, darling. Did you pick up Huanhuan? If you did, don’t rush home yet. Take her to the stationery store and buy her a few pens. She told me this morning that one of hers had broken and needed replacing.”

Nan Li’s voice was crisp and pleasant, each word pronounced clearly, with an air of efficiency and decisiveness.

But when Zhou Chen heard her, he let out a startled cry.

“What’s wrong, darling?” Nan Li asked anxiously upon hearing her husband’s exclamation.

“Nothing, nothing.” Zhou Chen quickly recovered. “I’m sorry, Lili. I completely forgot. I’m almost home already. I’ll turn around and go pick Huanhuan up now.”

“What’s wrong with you? You even forgot to pick up our daughter. That’s not like you at all.”

Nan Li sounded astonished. She knew her husband extremely well. He was utterly devoted to his daughter—sometimes, when she saw how much he doted on the girl, even she felt jealous as his wife.

How could such a devoted father possibly forget to pick up his own daughter?

By then, Zhou Chen had reached the entrance to his residential compound, Courtyard of the Times. He did not drive in, however, but stopped outside.

Hearing Nan Li’s question, he wore an helpless expression. It could hardly be blamed on him. Although he was now Xia Junshan, he knew perfectly well that, at heart, he had crossed over from another world. Even though he had inherited everything belonging to Xia Junshan, his consciousness was still primarily Zhou Chen’s.

He was no longer the daughter-obsessed Xia Junshan he had once been.

In the several hours since crossing over, he had been preoccupied with his circumstances and with figuring out how to complete his mission. How could he possibly have remembered that he was supposed to pick up a child that day?

“I had something come up and completely lost track of time. Would it be too late if I went now?”

“Forget it. I’ll call Ms. Zhang first. Huanhuan is on duty today, so she’ll be home later than usual. If she hasn’t left yet, I’ll go pick her up in a while. I’ve just gotten off work anyway. Once you get home, go to Mom’s and bring Cha Chao home.”

“All right. I’ll pick Cha Chao up after I park the car.”

“Okay, I’ll hang up first. Bye, darling.”

“Bye.”

Since both of them had to work, the children were usually picked up and dropped off by their maternal grandmother, Zhao Na. Cha Chao’s kindergarten was not far from Huanhuan’s Sail Primary School. After picking up Xia Chao Chao from kindergarten, Zhao Na would go on to collect Xia Huanhuan, then bring them both home.

But Huanhuan was on duty that day and would be home a little later than usual, which coincided with the end of the workday. Xia Junshan had originally been supposed to pick her up, but after Zhou Chen crossed over, he had completely forgotten about it.

After parking in the underground garage, Zhou Chen slung his briefcase over his shoulder and walked to his mother-in-law’s home.

Zhao Na lived in the residential compound diagonally opposite theirs, in a detached house with its own small courtyard. The property had been left to Nan Li’s maternal grandparents. When Nan Li’s family bought their apartment, they had chosen the spacious residence in Courtyard of the Times largely because of Zhao Na.

Zhou Chen found the place with ease. Not long after he pressed the doorbell, the door opened, revealing an elegantly dressed, short-haired woman.

Calling her an old lady was hardly appropriate. Thanks to her excellent upkeep, Zhao Na looked barely more than fifty.

“Mom, I’m here to pick up Cha Chao.”

The word came so naturally that even Zhou Chen found it surprising. This was the first time he had ever called a woman other than his own mother “Mom.” Presumably, it was because he had inherited Xia Junshan’s memories, leaving him without the slightest awkwardness.

“Where’s Huanhuan?”

Zhao Na glanced around and, not seeing Huanhuan, asked Zhou Chen.

“Lili went to pick her up. I came for Cha Chao.”

“Oh. Come in,” Zhao Na said with a nod.

Zhou Chen waved his hand. “No, I’ll leave as soon as I’ve picked up Cha Chao. I won’t come in.”

According to his memories, although their family lived close to Zhao Na, he rarely came over. Whenever Zhao Na needed help, it was always Nan Li who came to assist her.

“All right.”

Zhao Na said nothing more, merely calling toward the rooms, “Cha Chao, your father’s here to pick you up.”

“Daddy’s here?”

A voice immediately rang out from inside. Then came the patter of little feet, and a small figure came running over.

“Daddy!”

The instant he saw Zhou Chen, the little boy opened his arms and leapt toward him.

Zhou Chen scooped Cha Chao up. Perhaps influenced by the memories he had inherited, the moment he saw the child, this man who had never even been married felt an instinctive, overwhelming tenderness toward him.

In that instant, he suddenly understood.

He was Zhou Chen, but he was also Xia Junshan. And in this world, he was Xia Junshan above all else.

The Life Experience System had not brought him here to experience someone else’s life. It had brought him to experience his own life—the different lives he would live in different worlds.

Now that he had become Xia Junshan, he had to shoulder every responsibility that came with being Xia Junshan, including his wife, children, and parents.

“Did you miss Daddy?”

Having reached that realization, Zhou Chen smiled brightly and asked his son, Xia Chao Chao.

“Yes, yes.”

Cha Chao nodded vigorously, wrapping his arms around Zhou Chen’s neck and refusing to let go.

Zhou Chen smiled just as happily. So this was how wonderful it felt to be a father.

Before crossing over, when he had watched the television drama *A Little Dilemma*, his favorite minor character had been little Cha Chao.

He was adorable, beautiful, well behaved, and sensible. Though so young, he already knew how to cherish his sister and parents. And he was so obedient. How could anyone not love a child like that?

Holding Cha Chao in his arms, Zhou Chen took the boy’s schoolbag from Zhao Na.

“Mom, I’ll take Cha Chao home now.”

“All right. Off you go.”

“Cha Chao, say bye-bye to Grandma.”

“Bye-bye, Grandma.”

“Bye-bye, Cha Chao.”

…

“Were you naughty at kindergarten today?”

On the way home, Zhou Chen did not put Cha Chao down. He carried his son the entire way, savoring an experience he was having for the first time in his life.

Zhou Chen found himself liking the Life Experience System more and more.

“No. Cha Chao was very good. The teacher even praised me.”

Cha Chao hugged his father’s neck and answered cutely, his lips pursed in pride.

“Really? Our Cha Chao is such a good boy.”

“Mm-hmm. Daddy, are you going to give me a reward?”

Zhou Chen grinned, tapped the tip of Cha Chao’s little nose, and asked, “What kind of reward would Cha Chao like?”

Cha Chao narrowed his eyes and said, “A lollipop. Cha Chao wants a lollipop.”

Zhou Chen put on a troubled expression. “A lollipop? But Mommy said Cha Chao isn’t allowed to eat lollipops. Otherwise, all his little teeth will fall out.”

Cha Chao raised one index finger. “Just one. Only one. Please, Daddy?”

“No. If Mommy finds out, we’ll both get scolded.”

“Then Cha Chao can eat it quickly, and Mommy won’t find out, right?”

Seeing Cha Chao’s expression—clearly convinced that he was being extraordinarily clever and deserved praise—Zhou Chen laughed even more brightly.

“All right. Daddy agrees, but you can only have one, and you mustn’t tell Mommy.”

“Okay, okay! Hee-hee.”

Delighted that Zhou Chen had agreed, Cha Chao burst into happy laughter.

“Let’s go! We’re going to buy a lollipop!”

There was a convenience store at the entrance to the compound. Carrying Cha Chao, Zhou Chen let him choose one lollipop from the many displayed on the counter.

A plastic rack on the checkout counter was filled with lollipops in all kinds of flavors.

Blueberry, orange, pineapple, cola…

There were far too many varieties. Cha Chao’s eyes widened. He wanted several different flavors, but Daddy had agreed to buy him only one, which left him facing a terrible dilemma.